The off-shore platforms which the present invention is designed to protect are, at best, only semi-rigid structures subject to damage by excessive shock loading. Recently, because of drilling in deeper waters and in more open seas, and because of the use of heavier supply boats and barges, it has become necessary to develop better fendering systems, such systems being generally attached to individual legs of the off-shore platform. In the past, it has been the practice to use cast-off vehicle tires, usually large off-the-road or aircraft tires, mounted on a supporting column next to the platform leg, as shown for instance in U.S. Pat. Nos. Blackman 2,413,210 or Rolando 2,952,979, the latter showing the practice of filling the tires with cable or other material to prevent their excessive sagging or collapse. Some special structures have been built for this purpose, as shown for instance in U.S. Pat. Nos. Roach 3,005,435 and Schwall 2,424,635. However, each has attendant drawbacks. The cast-off vehicle tire systems involve the difficulty of finding a plurality of tires of the same large size, as well as the problems which arise when corded tires become waterlogged and sag. Moreover, deflated vehicle tires exhibit very poor shock absorption capabilities. Inventors such as Schwall, supra, have therefore resorted to making special rubber bumper moldings for this purpose, but his bumpers are mounted in a non-rotating manner and are therefore subject to quick destruction. Roach shows rotating cushions, but the use of axles and bearings provides too fragile a structure to withstand open-sea battering.